Vasu Vihara or Vasu Bihar is one of the famous archaeological site in Bangladesh. Locally is popular by the name ''Narapatir Dhap''. It is one of the ancient

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

heritage of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Location

It is situated in Shibganj Upazila of

Bogra Bogra ( bn, বগুড়া), officially known as Bogura, is a major city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in Rajshahi Divi ...

. It is located 6 kilometers west of

Mahasthangarh Mahasthangarh ( bn, মহাস্থানগড়, ''Môhasthangôṛ'') is one of the earliest urban archaeological sites so far discovered in Bangladesh. The village Mahasthan in Shibganj upazila of Bogra District contains the remain ...

History

In 1973–74, the excavation was started here and in the consecutive two session it was resumed. 18 ancient clay seals, mostly from the Pala dynasty, and two brick-built structures has been discovered by the archaeologists during an excavation.

Description

This complex has five

mound A mound is a heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded area of topographically higher el ...

s. Three of them are large and rest two are small. The small monastery is 49 meters north–south and east–west 46 meters. There are six rooms of the

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s in the four-arm of it. Front side of the rooms is surrounded by a veranda and there is an entrance in the middle of the east side. The big monastery also looks like the small monastery, but is larger in area and has more rooms. There is an open space among the surroundings of the small rooms of the monks. It seems there was an

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...

in the open space. Nearly 800

antique An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

have been found here. Among them miniature statues, plaques and seals, beads of precious stones, ornamental bricks and tablets, clay lamps, including vessel fragments are notable.

References

{{Ancient-Medieval sites in Bengal Archaeological sites in Bangladesh Buddhist monasteries in Bangladesh Buddhist universities and colleges

Location

History

Description

See also

References